The fusion of Palawan’s indigenous and modern cultures is front and center in this year’s celebration of the Baragatan Festival, which is capped by a colorful and vibrant street dancing competition.
There was no shortage of fun, thrill, and excitement during Palawan’s three-week celebration of its annual Baragatan Festival, which culminates on June 30.
Carrying on this year with the theme “Baragatan sa Bagong Palawan Ngayon, Moderno, Progresibo, at Kilala sa Buong Mundo”, this year’s festivities include the well-attended street-dancing competition.
Like in the previous years, the year’s competition is a showcase of cultures from seven of the province’s municipalities. It also paid tribute to the island’s industrious farmers and their harvests that fed the province and the rest of the country all-year-round.
This year’s competition saw more than three hours of vivid, energetic, and gratifying non-stop street dancing fun.
The delight and satisfaction may be on another level for live audiences who personally witnessed the event, but that was not the case for the judges, who certainly went through a tough time sifting all the delegates for them to pick a sole grand prize winner. After all, the Php 1 million grand prize is no joke.
The southern municipality of Brooke’s Point showcased its Muslim heritage, through its modern and cultural street dancing. The performance was amplified by the colorful and elaborate costumes worn by its contingents, in bright blue, yellow, and green.
Their music, too, was representative of the municipality’s rich culture and aspirations. The performance also offered vivid glimpses of the way of life in the thriving town, where the world’s biggest pearl was discovered. Brookes Point was declared the third prize winner. They took home, a whopping PhP500,000.
The delegates from Magsaysay, meanwhile, paid tribute to its mystifying Cuyongon heritage, music, and tradition. In their performance, they featured their native musical instrument, Tipano, which produced the music that the town’s graceful dancers moved along with during their eclectic performance. Their exquisite dance gave them a second prize finish, whose cash prize amounted to PhP750,000.
The agricultural and marine wonders of Quezon municipality, are not the only stars shining, during their contingent’s singular street dance performance. The nostalgic Manunggul jar made a stellar appearance too, and its tale was given a compelling narration and showcase during the performance.
The team also offered a solid and well-woven narrative, which was undoubtedly enough for them to score the yeses of all the judges. Their mesmerizing performance made them the grand prize winners of this year’s competition. They took home the PhP1 million grand prize.
Of course, no effort spent on the competition was wasted, as non-winning teams from Kalayaan, Rizal, El Nido, and San Vicente, all took home a consolation prize amounting to PhP100,000. A total of five minor special awards were also given.
